Mr. Altig’s Overview of the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Sutra

On that occasion, Maitreya, the great spiritual leader, and Bodhisattva, recited the following verses:

Wondrous is the law the Guide has shared,
A truth unseen, a life unpaired,
The Leaders’ majesty so grand,
Infinite life, a timeless strand.

Upon hearing this sacred decree,
Thousands rejoice in harmony,
True children of the World’s Great Guide,
Their hearts with gladness open wide.

Some reach the peak of enlightenment’s call,
Others on lower stages enthrall,
Unhampered views some now obtain,
And others grasp spells that never wane.

As numerous as atoms in the breeze,
Supreme knowledge some will seize,
After eight lives, others will see,
Infinite wisdom, eternally free.

Those who hear the Master’s voice,
In four lives, three, or two, they’ll rejoice,
Some after one will know the way,
All-knowing they’ll be, come what may.

Such is the gift of knowing the span,
Of the Chief’s life, the wondrous plan,
Countless beings will find their path,
Embracing wisdom’s endless aftermath.

Akin to atoms in eight vast lands,
To countless beings, enlightenment yields,
By this law, they awaken the dream,
Superior thoughts in endless stream.

The great Seer reveals this state,
Boundless, endless, no limit, no gate,
As immense as the ether’s embrace,
A Buddha’s wisdom, a timeless grace.

Angels and gods from distant lands,
Like sands of rivers, they join hands,
Raining down heavenly flowers divine,
In honor of the Truth, in a cosmic sign.

They soar like birds through skies so grand,
Strewing scents of a fragrant land,
To cover the Chief, the Victor’s might,
In a ceremony of love, in eternal light.

High aloft, tymbals ring without a touch,
Sweet sounds they sing, a symphony as such,
White cloth whirls down in thousands to adore,
The Chiefs of Wisdom, legends of yore.

Jewel censers filled with rich incense rise,
Moving freely, honoring the wise,
The mighty Lord, the world’s guiding embrace,
A fragrant homage to endless grace.

Bodhisattvas wise, innumerable and bright,
Hold umbrellas of jewels, a wondrous sight,
Elevated like chaplets, reaching the divine,
Up to the Brahma’s world, where stars align.

In their great joy, the Sugata’s children dear,
Attach streamers, triumphant and clear,
At banner tops, for Leaders they praise,
In verses by thousands, a celestial gaze.

Marvelous and splendid, the display unfolds,
Prodigious and extraordinary, the story told,
Gladdened by the life, the Tathagata’s reign,
A phenomenon of wonder, devoid of stain.

Grand is the matter in space’s ten embrace,
Great the sound raised by the Leaders’ grace,
Refreshing thousands, gifted with virtue and might,
Living beings on paths to enlightenment’s light.